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Treason charges against South Sudanese Vice President Machar
On Monday, the South Sudanese party Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) rejected the charges against its leader and the country’s vice president, Riek Machar, and called for a change of regime. Since the end of last week, Machar has been facing official charges from the Attorney General’s Office for high treason, murder, and crimes against humanity. He and 20 other people, including Petroleum Minister Puot Kang Chol, are accused of supporting or facilitating the attacks by the White Army militia in March this year in the Nasir region. More than 250 people were killed in the attacks and a UN helicopter was fired upon. President Salva Kiir held Machar responsible at the time and took numerous political and military members as well as relatives of Machar’s party into custody (Press Review CW 11/2025). Machar himself has been under house arrest ever since.
A few hours after the current charges were read out, President Kiir suspended his vice president. The SPLM-IO has now described this move as a breach of the 2018 peace agreement. In Monday’s statement, it accused President Salva Kiir of systematically weakening the SPLM-IO by dismissing members of the government without prior consultation and deliberately excluding them from the government. Several articles of the peace agreement guarantee Machar the post of vice president. His suspension therefore deprives the government of any legitimacy, according to the SPLM-IO. In addition, it called on the population to ‘defend the country and its citizens’. According to reports, there are currently no signs that the calls for mobilization are being taken literally, but concerns about violent clashes are growing. Meanwhile, additional troops from neighboring Uganda, which had already provided a contingent of troops ‘to secure Juba’ in March, were sent to the South Sudanese capital to support the government of President Kiir.
Additional pressure on the government in Juba comes from a report published on Tuesday by the UN Human Rights Council entitled ‘Plundering a Nation: how rampant corruption unleashed a human rights crisis in South Sudan’. The report accuses the South Sudanese leadership of systematically embezzling billions of US dollars in public funds. Through the Oil for Roads program alone, US$2.2 billion is said to have flowed into patronage networks instead of road construction. These funds are lacking for the provision of basic services, especially in the health and education sectors. The report sees this as the root cause of both the humanitarian crisis and the deteriorating security situation in the country. Justice Minister Joseph Geng Akech, however, rejected the UN’s allegations and attributed the poor economic situation to ongoing conflicts, the climate crisis, and declining oil sales.
In the wake of recent developments, South Sudan finds itself in one of its most serious political crises since the end of the civil war. Many observers believe that the peace agreement is seriously jeopardised by the latest developments and warn of an escalation in the country. Human rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch are calling for a fair trial for Machar in accordance with the principles of the rule of law. However, it is not yet known when the court proceedings will begin.
Libyan government signs deal with militia
On Saturday, Libya’s UN-recognised government under Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh signed a preliminary accord with the influential Radaa militia. The preliminary agreement, which was brokered by Turkey, is intended to curb the months-long dispute between the Government of National Unity (GNU) and the largely autonomous armed group that controls large parts of the capital Tripoli. A government spokesperson announced that details of the agreement would be published at a later date. However, according to media reports, the agreement centres on control of strategically important infrastructure and closer integration of the Radaa militia into state structures. As such in future, the two parties intend to jointly operate the four airports in the west of the country, including Mitiga Airport, which was previously under the control of the Radaa militia. Since 2018, this has been the only operational international airport near the capital since the main capital airport, Tripoli International Airport, had to be shut down due to severe damage caused by fighting. As early as Saturday, local media published footage allegedly showing troops under command of the Ministry of Defence entering the airport grounds of Mitiga. Furthermore, the agreement stipulates that prisons controlled by the Radaa militia will in future fall under the authority of the Libyan Attorney General’s Office.
It has also been reported that Osama al-Masri Najim, head of the Police judiciaire, who is responsible not only for Libyan prisons but also for detention camps for migrants, is to be replaced. The judicial official had long been the subject of contention between the government and the militia. In January, the International Criminal Court (ICC) had issued an arrest warrant for al-Masri, who is affiliated with the Radaa, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. He was initially arrested by Italian authorities in Turin, but was allowed to leave the country shortly thereafter. Civil society organisations subsequently accused the Italian government of circumventing international agreements in order not to jeopardise the migration agreement with Libya, which was concluded in 2017 and supported by the European Union. As part of the lawsuit, the ICC’s chief prosecutor urged the Libyan government to disband the Radaa. The Radaa militia is a paramilitary group led by Salafist Abdul Rauf Kara. Originally formed following the fall of Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011 as a force to combat escalating crime, it is increasingly accused of committing human rights violations.
Tensions in Tripoli had escalated dramatically in May when fighting broke out between government troops and armed militias. The government had intended to bring the militias under state control. Although most of the armed groups are on the payroll of the Ministry of the Interior, they are accused of acting on their own authority and, for example, occupying positions in state-owned companies in order to divert public funds. With the help of a militia close to Prime Minister Dbeibeh, the government stormed the headquarters of a rival militia, killing its leader. This led to anti-government protests in neighbourhoods controlled by the Radaa militia. An escalation of the conflict, which was also feared internationally at the time, was prevented for the time being. Nevertheless, tensions and sporadic fighting continued.
Despite the latest de-escalation, observers say the political situation remains fragile. The agreement is said to have divided the Radaa, with one faction critical of the compromise reached by leader Kara. Furthermore, the country’s problems are predominantly political in nature and cannot be fundamentally solved by this agreement, according to political scientist and analyst Jalel Harchaoui. In addition, the agreement suggests that the GNU government can no longer count on Ankara’s unconditional support. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government is known to have contributed decisively to the defence of Tripoli against the troops of eastern Libyan ruler Khalifa Haftar through a bilateral military agreement in 2020 and to have previously been considered a supporter of Dbeibeh; it is now showing increasing interest in a rapprochement between the competing Libyan governments. In August, Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalın made a surprise visit to Benghazi to meet with Haftar. Turkish media interpreted this as an expression of Ankara’s interest in working towards a single, centralised authority in Libya, as well as a sign of Ankara’s efforts to secure the ratification of a controversial Turkish-Libyan maritime agreement.
In other news
On Friday, Nigerian chef Hilda Baci set a new world record in Lagos for the largest portion of jollof rice ever prepared. Within nine hours, the 28-year-old and her team of ten cooked 8,780 kilograms of the popular West African dish – a record that has been officially confirmed by Guinness World Records. The ‘Gino World Jollof Festival with Hilda Baci’ in Lagos attracted thousands of spectators, among whom the massive mound of Nigerian-style jollof rice was distributed on 16,600 plates. Baci said the success was only possible thanks to the support of her team and described the record as proof of the unifying power of food. With this achievement, Baci consolidates her place as one of Nigeria’s most famous chefs and cultural ambassadors. Already in 2023, she set a world record in a cooking marathon, preparing 100 dishes in four days.